The island of Whitley, a British crown possession in the south Atlantic, is home to more penguins and sheep than people. It is also, like Prospero's retreat, an island full of noises, as the inhabitants are afflicted by an unexplained, ever-present hum.

Previous shows by Unlimited Theatre have made forays into quantum physics and neuroscience, so it seems a natural development for the company to explore the cognitive effects of sound. Even though Whitley's auditory affliction is fictitious, there is a genuine catalogue of mysterious, oceanic noises with names such as Bloop, Julia and Slowdown, which some scientists believe to be connected to the movement of icebergs.

In the drama, jointly scripted by Clare Duffy, Chris Thorpe and director Jon Spooner, the disturbing frequencies intensify when a berg crunches into the island's main harbour. But while the majority of inhabitants are content to block their ears, one 17-year-old girl is determined to trace the source, particularly when an audiologist researching the phenomenon washes up dead on the shore.

Unlimited's science-fiction thriller looks and sounds stylish thanks to a ominous soundtrack by electronic musician Minotaur Shock. And the production captures the unnerving insularity of an isolated community whose strange rituals and customs suggest a limited gene-pool similar to that of Summerisle in The Wicker Man.

The company has undoubtedly done its homework (two cognitive psychologists are credited in consultant roles). Yet as the research supports what turns out to be a fairly generic and somewhat broadly acted murder-mystery, the science behind the show ultimately feels more engaging than the fiction.

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